Fishing hooks or lures often snag on hard-to-reach objects such as submerged logs or high tree branches. Such a snagged hook is frequently difficult or impossible to reach by hand. Since pulling on the line only further embeds the hook into the hooked object, the user can only free the tackle by breaking the fishing line. Unfortunately, he must sacrifice his hook in the process. Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a device to release a hook from an object even when out of the user'reach.
Springs have previously been incorporated in fishing tackle products both to aid in hooking a fish (snubbers) and to release a hook from an object. While this invention provides some snubbing action, it is related primarily to a device for releasing a hook when snagged.
Previous fish hook releases have typically used a compression spring to urge two parts of an assembly together. The present invention has certain advantages over the previous devices in that its construction is very simple, the spring is completely enclosed and protected from entanglement with unwanted objects, and a positive stop means is provided to prevent over-extension of the spring.